The Delaware and Raritan Canal further south in New Jersey was more successful.
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| Eric Polk posted The Morris Canal in New Jersey had an elevation change of over 900 feet along its course. Rather than the usual lock systems to raise and lower watercraft, it utilized a series of water-driven inclined planes to haul them up and down. This is plane number 7. Most of the canal and its works were demolished in 1924. [The LoC copy is smaller and exposed differently. Plane 7 West] "16. LOOKING DOWN INCLINED PLANE 7 WEST. FLUME THAT CARRIES WATER TO PENSTOCK IS VISIBLE AT RIGHT. WATER POWER WAS USED TO OPERATE LIFTING MACHINERY. - Morris Canal, Phillipsburg, Warren County, NJ" |
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17. LOOKING UP INCLINED PLANE 7 WEST. - Morris Canal, Phillipsburg, Warren County, NJ |
The Morris Canal is one of the few amphibious canals to operate in the United States. Stretching from Phillipsburg on the Delaware River to Jersey City on the Hudson River, the Morris Canal opened up the coal fields of eastern Pennsylvania to the industrial Northeastern united States. [HAER-data]
The lock chambers were 9' x 75' with a draft of 4.5'. (25 ton boats). Most locks were enlarged during 1840-41 to 11' x 95' (44 tons). Most were again enlarged by 1860 to a clear length of 100' in the chamber (70 tons). The largest inclined plane was 9 West. It had a vertical lift of 100' and it was over a quarter mile long. It took 12 minutes to raise a boat. (15 minutes according to tech.) "Prior to the use of wire cables, iron chains were used." (I'm reminded that steel did not become common until the later half of the 19th Century.) The 1860 boats with their cradle had a weight of 110-125 tons. The 87.5' 1860 boats were built in two sections that were hinged so that they could bend over the summit. (The summit was the bank at the end of the canal on the high side of the plane.) [CanalSocietyNJ-morris] Anthracite coal and iron ore were the dominate cargos. There was a total of 1,674' of elevation change that used 23 lift locks and 23 inclined planes. [tech] Planes 9W, 6W and 12E were double tracked. While one cradle went up, the other went down. [Greenwich] If a change in elevation was over 20', a plane was used instead of locks. The first trip from Newark to Phillipsburg was completed Nov 4, 1831. The 90 mile trip took about five days. The extension to Jersey City was added in 1836. There were 34 locks when you include the feeder, outlet, tide and guard locks. [History]
The planes and locks are numbered from the summit at Lake Hopatcong with an elevation 914'. Thus the need for the East and West designations.
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| CanalSocietyNJ |
Originally, the water power was provided by an overshoot water wheel. In the 1850s, they were converted to cast iron reaction turbines that turned at about 67 rpm. [tech]
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| Hi Res via Tech |
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| Morris Canal Plane 2 West - Stanhope |
P4W, P1E, P2E, P6E and P12E are also overview shots. P8E has a view of the upstream side of a turbine building, and P10E has a view of a downstream side.
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This illustrations provides insight as to how the boats were pulled out of the water. The Allegheny Portage Railroad was the hybird canal and railroad system that the Pennsylvania State built so that Philadelphia could try to compete with New York after the Erie Canal was built.
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| Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site posted One of the more common questions that we receive here at the Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site is just how the sectional canal boats were loaded onto the specially made rail cars. In the canal basins in Hollidaysburg and Johnstown, a track would be laid down into the water. A stationary steam engine would lower the railcars down into the water, where the workers would float the separate portions of the sectional canal boats onto the railcars, and the stationary steam engine pulls the railcars out of the water, ready to be attached to a locomotive, ready to continue it’s journey over the Allegheny Mountains. This process is very similar to how we load and unload small fishing boats today, just using steam engines and rails, instead of pickup trucks. (sl) Photo: An artist’s rendering of the sectional canal boats being raised from the canal basin onto the railroad. |
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| Metrotrails posted Morris Canal arch at the base of inclined planes #11 west in Phillipsburg NJ. The stone work is now undermined on the left side requiring action. Scott Houston: Who would pay for this ? Metrotrails: Scott Houston there was already a grant awarded for the project that had to be stalled because there wasn't clear title to the property. It is now known to be owned by NJ DEP. |
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| Dennis DeBruler commented on Metrotrails' post The single blue line must have been the canal. 1890 Easton Quadrangle @ 1:62,500 |
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| Dennis DeBruler commented on Metrotrails' post The photographer must be under the railroad bridge. |
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| Metrotrails posted The Morris Canal Arch at the western terminus of the canal has been undermined by the Delaware River. The rubble rock from within the frame of the archway is beginning to erode out, and will continue to get worse if not addressed. Jeff Nolf: I grew up playing there. I’ve been there to see that almost completely under water when the river is high. Imagine the turbulence as the water runs through there ?? Will be sad to watch it crumble. |
Metrotrails posted two photos with the comment: "Then and Now Series: Morris Canal Inclined Plane #7 West in Bowerstown, Washington Township NJ, historic postcard image compared to the same scene on our 2022 visit.
"The Morris Canal was the greatest climber of the world's canals through the implementation of 23 Scotch Turbine driven inclined planes, such as this one. They were short portage railroads where boats would be towed up hill in a track on a cradle rather than pass through steps of locks.
The canal was abandoned in 1924 and much dismantled by 1927. Plane Hill Road was relocated from the left onto the former plane bed, and the aqueduct over Pohatcong Creek now serves as a road bridge over the same."Judith Fornoff Geschardt: I checked Google maps and Zillow. The house currently at 39 Plane Hill Rd is the stone house on the old photo (the original portion, anyway), built in 1832!
Metrotrails: Judith Fornoff Geschardt yes, it was a plane tenders house. The person who operated the inclined plane.
M'ke Helbing shared
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| 14:01 video @ 2:21, the description of the Morris Canal starts here. The stuff in the beginning is about coal being important for the industrial revolution. |
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| New Jersey Memories posted Morris & Essex Canal in Newark in 1870 |
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| Comments on the above post |
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| Christopher Carr commented on the above post Incline began just below Summit Steve Saperstein: Christopher Carr appropriately named Lock Street. |
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